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Anniversaries of Note in 2011: Books

BOOKS

The following books and authors should be remembered this year for having reached a significant milestone. [More on the terminology used.]

Anniversaries of the publication of important book (details below) [More about finding Books]:

  • the semicentennial (50th) of the publication of the New Individualist Review, editor-in-chief Ralph Raico (1961-1968)
  • the semicentennial (50th) of the publication of Bruno Leoni's Freedom and the Law (1961)
  • the centennial (100th) of the publication of Max Farrand's edition of The Records of the Federal Convention of 1787 in 3 vols. (1911)
  • the centennial (100th) of the publication of Irving Fisher's The Purchasing Power of Money (1911)
  • the sesquicentennial (150th) of the publication of John Elliot Cairnes' The Character and Logical Method of Political Economy (1861)
  • the sesquicentennial (150th) of the publication of Sir Henry Sumner Maine's Ancient Law (1861)
  • the bicentennial (200th) of the publication of Destutt de Tracy's, A Commentary and Review of Montesquieu’s ’Spirit of Laws’(1811)
  • the quatercentenary (400th) of the publication of the King James Version of the translation of the Bible (1611)
  • the quincentennial (500th) of the publication of Desiderius Erasmus' In Praise of Folly (1511)

[See other Anniversaries of Note]

1. The semicentennial (50th) of the publication of the New Individualist Review, editor-in-chief Ralph Raico (1961-1968)

Initially sponsored by the University of Chicago Chapter of the Intercollegiate Society of Individualists, the New Individualist Review was more than the usual “campus magazine.” It declared itself “founded in a commitment to human liberty.” Between 1961 and 1968, seventeen issues were published which attracted a national audience of readers. Its contributors spanned the libertarian-conservative spectrum, from F. A. Hayek and Ludwig von Mises to Richard M. Weaver and William F. Buckley, Jr. 
Further reading: /title/2136

 

2. The semicentennial (50th) of the publication of Bruno Leoni's Freedom and the Law (1961).

Bruno Leoni (1913-1967) was Professor of Legal Theory and the Theory of the State at the University of Pavia, a practicing lawyer, founder editor of the journal Il Politico, newspaper columnist, and secretary and president of the Mont Pelerin Society. The greatest obstacle to rule of law in our time, contends the author of this thought-provoking work, is the problem of overlegislation. In modern democratic societies, legislative bodies are increasingly usurping functions that were and should be exercised by individuals or groups rather than government. The result is an unwieldy surfeit of laws and regulations that by their sheer volume stifle individual freedom.

A new edition was published by Liberty Fund in 1991.

Further reading: /title/1056

 

3. The centennial (100th) of the publication of Max Farrand's edition of The Records of the Federal Convention of 1787 in 3 vols. (1911)

A 3 volume collection of the records of the Federal Convention which was held in Philadelphia between May and September 1787. The sessions were secret but the proceedings were reconstructed from notes kept by the official secretary and some participants, most notably James Madison. 
Further reading: /title/1785

 

4. The centennial (100th) of the publication of Irving Fisher's The Purchasing Power of Money (1911)

A classic book by one of America’s greatest mathematical economists. Fisher states in the introduction that “The purpose of this book is to set forth the principles determining the purchasing power of money and to apply those principles to the study of historical changes in that purchasing power, including in particular the recent change in “the cost of living,” which has aroused world-wide discussion.” 
Further reading: /title/1165

 

5. The sesquicentennial (150th) of the publication of John Elliot Cairnes' The Character and Logical Method of Political Economy (1861)

John Elliot Cairnes (1823-1875), Irish economist, Professor of Political Economy at the University of Oxford, was a follower of Ricardo and Mill. His work clarified the principles, logical, and scientific methods behind their thought. The book consists of lectures Cairnes gave to explain the basic principles behind classical economics. 
Further reading: /title/282

 

6. The sesquicentennial (150th) of the publication of Sir Henry Sumner Maine's Ancient Law (1861)

Sir Henry Sumner Maine (1822-1888) was one of the great intellects of the Victorian era. He trained as a lawyer, taught Civil Law at Cambridge University, served at the Inns of Court in London, worked on law reform in India, and was a professor of Jurisprudence at Oxford University. He wrote several books including Ancient Law (1861) on the history of law and Popular Government (1885).  
Further reading: /title/2001

 

7. The bicentennial of the publication of Destutt de Tracy's, A Commentary and Review of Montesquieu’s ’Spirit of Laws’(1811)

Destutt de Tracy (1754-1836) was a philosophe and one of the founders in the 1790s of the classical liberal republican group known as the Idéologues, a politician under several regimes spanning the Revolution and the Restoration, and an influential author. His writings particularly impressed Thomas Jefferson, who translated and published 2 of them in America, including this work on Montesquieu which appeared in 1811. While a member of the Senate, he opposed Napoleon, and also spoke out against the subsequent constitutional monarchy, and in support of American-style laissez-faire republicanism. He coined the term “ideology” while he was at the Institut National.
Further reading: /title/960

 

8. The quatercentenary (400th) of the publication of the King James Version of the translation of the Bible (1611)

A translation of the Bible was organized by King James I of England and it was published in 1611 - hence it is referred to as the "King James Version". The edition we have onine is a parallel version of the Old and New Testaments with the King James Version in one column and the revised Version in another column. This title is available only in PDF because of the enormous file size, HTML versions are available for each Testament separately. 
Further reading: /title/2360

 

9. The quincentennial (500th) of the publication of Desiderius Erasmus' In Praise of Folly (1511)

Desiderius Erasmus (1466-1536) was a Christian, humanist scholar; the first editor of the New Testament; a classicist; and a leading voice in the theological debates of the early Reformation in northern Europe. He contended with the reformer Martin Luther (1483-1546), emphasizing the importance of free will in human actions against Luther’s belief in the absolute bondage of the will to sin. In this work the personification of Folly comes to earth to expose the follies, foibles, and failings of humans. Illustrated with 77 woodcuts by Hans Holbein.
Further reading: /title/551